Seddon Vincent

Victor Seddon Vincent (1 June 1908 – 9 November 1964) was an Australian politician. Born at Leonora, Western Australia, he was educated at Scotch College in Perth, and then the University of Western Australia, becoming a barrister. He practiced in Kalgoorlie from 1931. After serving in World War II (1939-1945), he was a member of Kalgoorlie Municipal Council, and President of the Kalgoorlie Chamber of Commerce. In 1949, he was elected to the Australian Senate as a Liberal Senator for Western Australia. He held the seat until his death in 1964; Peter Sim was appointed to replace him.

Early life Vincent was born on 1 June 1908 in the remote mining town of Leonora, Western Australia. He was one of three children born to Ethel (née Williams) and Victor Franklin Vincent. His father was an accountant and insurance agent. His father remarried to Marion Meagher in 1914 and settled the family in Perth in 1924, initially in Swanbourne and later in Cottesloe. In the same year, his stepmother discovered that his father had been conducting an extramarital affair with Annie Ellison and had fathered a child. They separated in the same year and Victor Vincent subsequently lived with Ellison, although a judicial separation was not granted until 1929.

Vincent attended primary school in Leonora and was then sent to boarding school at Scotch College, Perth. He was a talented sportsman, excelling at Australian rules football, rugby union and surf lifesaving. He played 32 senior games for the Claremont-Cottesloe Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) from 1926 to 1928. He also played rugby union at state level and won three state titles with the Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club. During World War II he served with the administrative and special duties branch, including briefly in New Guinea. He moved to RAAF headquarters in Melbourne in 1942 as director of staff duties. He was discharged in October 1945 with the rank of squadron leader. The Vincent Report influenced the ultimate creation of the government-funded Australian Film Development Corporation and the Australian Film and Television School, which occurred after Vincent's death.

Vincent continued to make public appearances after being diagnosed with a terminal illness, including appearing on television to defend his committee's report. Two weeks before his death, he participated in a panel discussion in Perth and criticised parliament for neglecting Australian television.

Personal life In 1931, Vincent married Freda Treadgold; the couple had no children. Freda worked as a speech and drama teacher and the couple were active in repertory theatre, winning several awards for their amateur productions. Vincent was also a "recognised authority" on native wildflowers.